"Russians Tied To The SolarWinds Cyberattack Hacked Federal Prosecutors, DOJ Says"

The Justice Department recently discovered that the Russian hackers behind the massive SolarWinds cyberespionage campaign broke into the email accounts of some of the most prominent federal prosecutors' offices around the country last year. The department stated that 80% of Microsoft email accounts used by employees in the four U.S. attorney offices in New York were breached. In all, 27 U.S. Attorney offices had at least one employee's email account compromised during the hacking campaign. In a statement Friday, the Justice Department said that it believes the accounts were compromised from May 7 to Dec. 27, 2020. Such a timeframe is notable because the SolarWinds campaign, which infiltrated dozens of private-sector companies and think tanks as well as at least nine U.S. government agencies, was first discovered and publicized in mid-December. The list of affected offices includes several large and high-profile ones like those in Los Angeles, Miami, Washington, and the Eastern District of Virginia. The Southern and Eastern Districts of New York, where large numbers of staff were hit, handle some of the most prominent prosecutors in the country. The Justice Department said all victims had been notified, and it is working to mitigate "operational, security and privacy risks" caused by the hack. The Justice Department did not provide additional detail about what kind of information was taken and what impact such a hack may have on ongoing cases.

NPR reports: "Russians Tied To The SolarWinds Cyberattack Hacked Federal Prosecutors, DOJ Says"